Jeremiah 36:17

And they asked Baruch, saying, Tell us now, How didst thou write all these words at his mouth? HOW DIDST THOU WRITE ALL THESE WORDS AT HIS MOUTH? What they wished to know was, whether what Baruch had read to them was written by him from memory, after hearing Jeremiah repeating his prophecies continuously, or accurately, from the prophet's own dictation....

The king’s counsellors were, no doubt, so astonished when they heard that these threatenings had been written as the Prophet had dictated them, that they were agitated by different thoughts, as the unbelieving are wont to be; and not receiving as they ought to have done, the heavenly doctrine, they vacillated, and could not pursue a uniform course. Such, then, was the uncertainty that possessed the minds of the princes; for they could hardly believe that these words had been delivered by memory, but had suspicion of some trickery, as the unbelieving imagine many such things respecting God’s servants; and they seem to act thus designedly, that they may obscure God’s favor, which appears before their eyes. For this purpose, then, they are said to _ask Baruch _how he took the _words from the mouth of Jeremiah _(105)...

9-19 Shows of piety and devotion may be found even among those, who, though they keep up forms of godliness, are strangers and enemies to the power of it. The princes patiently attended the reading of the whole book. They were in great fear. But even those who are convinced to the truth and importance of what they hear, and are disposed to favour those who preach it, often have difficulties and reserves about their safety, interest, or preferment, so that they do not act according to their convictions, and try to get rid of what they find troublesome....

Verse Jeremiah 36:17. _HOW DIDST THOU WRITE ALL THESE WORDS? - AT HIS MOUTH?_] So the text should be pointed. They wished to know whether he had not copied them, or whether he wrote as Jeremiah prophesied....

The scroll might have been drawn up by Baruch from memoranda of his own without the prophet’s direct authority. The princes therefore did not ask from curiosity, but to obtain necessary information....

CHAPTERS 36-38. NARRATIVE OF EVENTS PRECEDING THE SIEGE OF JERUSALEM. Jeremiah 36:1. THE ROLL OF PROPHECY DESTROYED BY JEHOIAKIM. EXPOSITION In the fourth year of Jehoiakim (which, it is important to remember, was the first of Nebuchadnezzar) Jeremiah was directed to write down all his previous revelations, from the beginning of his ministry to the present day. Such, at least, is the literal meaning of verses 1, 2; but it would seem that the literal meaning can hardly be the right one. First of all, a historically accurate reproduction of the prophecies would not have suited Jeremi

AND THEY ASKED BARUCH,.... The following question, which may seem at first sight an odd, needless, and trifling one, as some have called it: SAYING, TELL US NOW, HOW DIDST THOU WRITE ALL THESE WORDS AT HIS MOUTH? this question does not regard the manner of writing them, whether with ink or not, for that they could see with their eyes, and yet Baruch's answer seems to have respect to this, as if he so understood them; nor barely the matter of them, as whether it was the substance of what was contained in the roll that Jeremiah dictated, and that only, leaving it to Baruch to use what words he would, or whether the express words were dictated by him; but rather it seems to have regard to the possibility of doing it: by the question it appears, that Baruch had told the princes that the prophet had dictated all these things to him, and he had taken them down in writing from his mouth; now t...

CHAPTER 36 The Indestructibility of the Word of God _ 1. The writing of the roll (Jeremiah 36:1) _ 2. The reading of the roll (Jeremiah 36:4) 3. The king cuts and burns the roll (Jeremiah 36:21) 4. The indestructibility of the Word of God (Jeremiah 36:27) Jeremiah 36:1. Once more we are taken back to the fourth year of Jehoiakim. Jeremiah is now commanded to commit all the words Jehovah had spoken to him to writing. It was for the purpose that the people might hear of all the evil and

JEREMIAH 36. THE WRITING OF THE ROLL. This chapter narrates how the oral prophecies of Jeremiah were first put into writing (604 B.C.). The account is obviously important for the criticism of this book see Introduction, § 4, for the probable contents of the roll. The circumstances also throw light on the origin of written prophecy in general; the failure of the oral testimony (Jeremiah 36:3 cf. Isaiah 8:1; Isaiah 8:16; Isaiah 30:8) led to its preservation through writing. The pioneers amongst the so-called literary prophets are not primarily writers at all; the written records of their work are largely incidental, a fact which helps to explain the f

See introd. summary to the chapter....